Forever in our Hearts
by BubblyShell22
Summary: Bart visits Mrs. Krabappel's grave and realizes that his teacher cared more for him than he thought. In loving memory of Marcia Wallace.


Forever in our Hearts

A/N: This is my first Simpsons fan fic, but I thought that I would do this in honor of the legendary Marcia Wallace who passed away recently. After I heard the news, I decided it would be fitting for me to do my own tribute to her beloved character Mrs. Krabappel. And so, this is dedicated to you, Marcia Wallace. Thanks for bringing us Mrs. Krabappel and showing us that teachers really do care about their students, even if they are little devils in blue shorts. I hope you all enjoy this little story.

Disclaimer: The Simpsons and all related characters are property of Matt Groening and Fox Studios. I only own the plot to this story.

Bart Simpson sat in his room, feeling really upset. He had never thought he would have to deal with the death of his teacher so soon. He always thought that Mrs. Krabappel would outlive him and the other kids instead of dying so suddenly. Her cause of death was due to natural causes, but how could a healthy person just die like that? It wasn't fair. Was this punishment for all of the pranks he'd pulled on her? Was God getting him back for all the sarcastic remarks he'd made about her and all the times he'd ridiculed her? He'd asked his mom the same thing, and Marge had reassured him that it wasn't his fault.

"Sweetie, God would never punish you for something like that," she had said gently. "It was just Mrs. Krabappel's time to go."

"But she wasn't ready to go!" Bart protested. "She had so much life left in her!"

Marge put her arm around her son. "Honey, it's not that simple," she said. "Sometimes when it's time for someone to go, they have to go."

"Well it's not fair!" Bart snapped. "She didn't deserve to die that way! If God really cared about her and about us, He would have saved her!" Then he had fled to his room, sobbing for his dead teacher.

But now things certainly hadn't gotten better for him. He needed to get away, and he figured a trip to Mrs. Krabappel's grave would be a good idea. Maybe he would find peace there. So he left his room and made his way outside. On his way to the cemetery he spotted Nelson Muntz and his cronies Jimbo, Dolph, and Kearney. He really didn't want to face the bullies now, but there was no way to avoid them.

"Hey, Simpson, where are you going?" Nelson asked him.

Bart thought about lying and decided against it. "I'm going to visit Krabappel's grave," he said.

"Well, it's not much of a grave now," Nelson gloated. "We knocked down the tombstone and threw rocks at it. Then we danced on her grave."

Bart bristled. "How could you do that?" he chastised. "Don't you know that was disrespectful to her?"

"Oh, come on, Simpson, you would have done the same thing, and you know it," Nelson retorted.

"No, I wouldn't!" Bart replied. "I had a lot of respect for Mrs. Krabappel and never would disrespect her like that."

"Aww, Simpson's sticking up for the teacher," Jimbo laughed. "How sweet!"

"Yeah, you're just putting on an act," Kearney added. "We all know you didn't really care about her."

"Well, you're wrong because I did!" answered Bart. Then he walked away before they could tease him anymore. He couldn't believe what they'd done. How could they have disrespected her like that? Sure, he was a prankster and had caused trouble in her class, but he would never disrespect her gravesite. Even he knew that was wrong.

He stopped at the Quick E. Mart to pick up some flowers, thinking that it would be a good idea to have them for his teacher. Apu smiled gently at him as he entered.

"Ah, it is good to see you, Bart," he said. "How are you holding up?"

"I guess I'm okay," replied Bart. "I was gonna take some flowers to Mrs. Krabappel's grave. Do you have anything I could use?"

"Ah, yes, we have a few bouquets that might really look nice on her grave," answered Apu. "Which would you prefer?"

Bart studied the selection and decided to get the ones that had orange and blue flowers. For some reason, he figured it would honor her if he put colors just like the clothes he wore. After he finished paying for the flowers out of some money he'd saved up, he headed to the cemetery.

When he got there, he saw that Principal Skinner was also there, surveying the damage that Nelson and his cronies had done. As he spotted Bart, a look of disapproval covered his face.

"Bart, how could you disrespect Edna's grave like this?" he demanded. "I know you've done some pretty shady pranks in your time, but this has just gone too far, young man."

"It wasn't me, Principal Skinner," Bart told him. "I was in my room. If you don't believe me, ask my mom and she can tell you I was there. I was on my way to visit the grave and saw Nelson and his buddies. They told me what they had done and had a good laugh about it."

"And I suppose you laughed along with them, didn't you?" Skinner asked him.

Bart shook his head. "No, I yelled at them and told them it was wrong to disrespect Mrs. K.'s grave like that. Then they said that I probably would have done the same thing, and I told them I wouldn't."

Skinner's look of outrage vanished at Bart's words. "Oh, I see," he said. "Well, I guess I should have seen that coming, Bart. Despite your miscreant ways, Edna always did admire you. I always told her you'd never graduate from high school, and she told me that you would go on to become someone really special. I asked her how she could believe that, and you know what she said?"

"What?" Bart asked him.

"She said, 'Because there's more to him than what you know. He may be a prankster, but he does have a good heart and he is very smart when he puts forth the effort to study. I think Bart Simpson will do wonderful things one day, and people will look at him and wonder how they ever could have doubted him. You may not believe me, Seymour, but I know Bart will do it.'"

Bart was shocked. He never thought that Mrs. Krabappel believed in him so much. "So, what did you say to that?" he asked.

"I told her that she was probably right and that time would tell if it would happen," he answered. "Edna always said you were her favorite student in class."

"Really? Mrs. K. said that?"

"Uh-huh," Skinner replied. "And you know what? She was right. I have to tell you, Bart, that I believed her after you nominated her for Teacher of the Year. That was a very sweet gesture on your part, and you taught me a lot in that moment about respect and putting her first. I always overlooked Edna many times because of Mother, and it always made me feel guilty." He sighed. "I guess that's why she chose Ned Flanders instead of me to be with. I kind of wish she had chosen differently, but you can't stop what's already happened. Even so, you showed me what it means to really be a man in that moment and what it means to really put yourself out there for someone you love. So, I want to thank you, Bart, for being there for her and really trying your best to show her how you much you cared."

"Well, thanks, Principal Skinner," Bart said. "I never knew Mrs. Krabappel really liked me that much. I wasn't that much of a good kid though." He smiled. "In fact, the last time we were together, Milhouse wanted me to pull a prank on her, but I decided not to, and I'm glad I didn't. If I had, she would have died hating me."

"Oh, no, I don't believe that at all," Skinner told him. "As a matter of fact, Edna always admired your pranks. She would often discuss them with me and marvel at how brilliant you were. She even persuaded me to let you off a few times when I wanted to suspend you."

Bart had often wondered why Seymour had let him off a few times, and now it was because of Edna and how she persuaded him. The young boy felt guilty for all of the times he'd made fun of her, and all this time she had been sticking up for him. That made him realize that Edna Krabappel was truly a good person to have never given up on him no matter how many times he antagonized her.

"Wow! I guess Edna really did like me."

"Yes, she did, Bart, and she'll always be watching over you. I know it won't be the same having a different teacher, but I know you'll move on. Edna will always be with you, and if this new teacher doesn't believe in you, just know that she did and that I believe in you, too."

"Thanks, Seymour," Bart said. "That means a lot." The two of them picked up Edna's tombstone and put it in its rightful place. Then Bart placed the flowers that he'd gotten on the grave and looked at the remains of his fallen teacher. "Goodbye, Mrs. K. I'll really miss you. Thanks for always believing in me when no one else would. And I promise to take care of Seymour and make sure he doesn't go too crazy." He stayed there for a few minutes more with his principal and then turned and headed home.

22222

The new teacher, Mrs. Langston, pulled Bart out of class and marched him to Principal Skinner's office herself. She was offended by the prank he had pulled on her, and she was going to make sure he was punished for it.

"Bart Simpson, I'm disappointed in you!" Skinner shouted. "You simply won't stop, will you? You need a good hard lesson, and that's what you're going to get."

"Make sure to punish him severely, Seymour," Mrs. Langston said. "I want him to know the meaning of respect."

"Yes, he will be punished severely," Skinner reassured her. After she left the office, Skinner smiled and winked at Bart. "Nice work, Simpson," he whispered. "I bet Edna would be proud of you for that prank."

Bart laughed. "Yeah, I bet she would," he said. "So, what's my 'punishment' going to be?"

"Just some light filing with me," Skinner answered. "But if she asks, tell her I beat the stuffing out of you and gave you two weeks' detention."

"Deal," Bart said, and they shook on it.

When Bart went home, he felt so much better. Sure, Mrs. Langston wasn't Edna, but he hoped that in time, she'd believe in him just as much as Edna did. He looked up at the blue sky and smiled. "That was for you, Edna," he said. And when he looked at the clouds he swore that one of them took the shape of Mrs. Krabappel's face, and she was smiling. He could almost hear her give her trademark, "Ha!" of laughter, and it made him feel good. No matter what happened now, he knew that Edna Krabappel would always be in his heart and that she would keep on believing in him even though she wasn't there to guide him. That was all that mattered to Bart, and he would carry out his promise to do great things in the future. After all, he was doing it for Edna.

The End

A/N: So, that's my little tribute fic. I hope you liked it and that it filled your heart with joy. I may do other Simpsons fics in the future if I think about it, but this one was just calling to me to be done. Feel free to leave a review and have a shelltastic day.


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